Description
The sixth edition of Peter Kivisto's popular anthology, Illuminating Social Life, continues to demonstrate to students how social theories can help them make sense of the swirling events and perplexing phenomena that they encounter in their daily lives. A perfect complement for sociological theory courses, this updated edition includes 13 original essays by leading scholars in the field that help students better understand and appreciate the relevance of social theory. Once again, Peter Kivisto's collection illuminates the connection between sociological theory and the realities that students are faced with every day —from the Internet, alcohol use, and body building to shopping malls, the working world, and fast-food restaurants
Table of Contents
CLASSICAL SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY
Introduction - Peter Kivisto
Celebratory Capitalism and the Commodification of Information - Stephen Adair
The Weberian Theory of Rationalization and the McDonaldization of Contemporary Society - George Ritzer
Surfing the Net for Community: A Durkheimian Analysis of Electronic Gatherings - Anne M. Hornsby
Alcohol-Related Windows on Simmel’s Social World - William J. Staudenmeier, Jr.
CONTEMPORARY THEORIES AND THEIR CONNECTIONS TO THE CLASSICS
Introduction - Peter Kivisto
Cultural Sociology and the Meaning of Music - Scott Appelrouth
Why Do African Americans Pay More for New Cars? A Structural Explanation - Christopher Prendergast
Critical Theory, Legitimation Crisis, and the Deindustrialization of Flint, Michigan - Steven P. Dandaneau
Race-Based Critical Theory and the “Happy Talk” of Diversity in America - Douglas Hartmann and Joyce M. Bell
The Socially Constructed Body: Insights From Feminist Theory - Judith Lorber and Patricia Yancey Martin
Organizing Door-to-Door Sales: A Symbolic Interactionist Analysis - David Schweingruber and Nancy Berns
Goffman’s Dramaturgical Sociology: Personal Sales and Service in a Commodified World - Peter Kivisto and Dan Pittman
Contrasts of Carnival: Mardi Gras Between the Modern and the Postmodern - Kevin Fox Gotham
Negotiating the Social Landscape to Create Social Change - Anne F. Eisenberg
Globalization Theory and Religious Fundamentalism - William H. Swatos, Jr.
